FROM GREEN OFFICE INITIATIVES TO SUSTAINABLE IMPACT: THE ROLE OF EMPLOYEE GREEN BEHAVIOR IN HIGHER LEARNING INSTITUTIONS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.35631/IJEMP.935071Keywords:
Employee Green Behavior, Green Office Practices, Higher Learning Institutions, Resource-Based View, Sustainability OutcomesAbstract
Higher learning institutions are increasingly adopting green office practices as part of wider initiatives to reduce environmental impacts. However, the adoption of sustainability policies and practices does not ensure major changes in the day-to-day operations. Existing studies have discussed organizational green practices and employee pro-environmental behavior, but how these two elements work together within higher education contexts remains less clear. Specifically, the role of Employee Green Behavior (EGB) in the relationship between Green Office Practices and Sustainability Outcomes is not well understood. This study addresses this gap by developing a conceptual framework that places EGB within the relationship between institutional green practices and their sustainability outcomes. A structured literature search was used to retrieve peer-reviewed articles from Scopus, followed by a narrative review. The selected studies were analyzed using integrative thematic analysis to identify recurrent themes and relationships related to the proposed framework. The Resource-Based View (RBV) helps to explain how Green Office Practices provide the organizational resources and structures needed to support sustainability, and Social Identity Theory (SIT) offers an employee-level perspective by explaining how identification with institutional environmental values can shape green behavior. Together, these perspectives position EGB as the proposed mediator linking institutional green practices with outcomes including resource conservation, waste reduction, energy efficiency and improved environmental performance. Organizational factors like green leadership, Green Human Resource Management, green training and an eco-friendly workplace culture may also support this relationship. The study frames organizational practices and employee behavior within the same framework, offering a more lucid account of how sustainability initiatives can move from institutional policy to everyday practice. For university administrators and sustainability practitioners, this outlook emphasizes the significance of employee participation in improving the effectiveness and endurance of green office initiatives.
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